


1796 Broadway Index and Chapter Summaries

by rainproof, teaberryblue



Series: Earth-1796 [10]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: 1796 Broadway, Index, Meta, Other, Spoilers, Summary, ancillary materials, supplemental reading material
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-19
Updated: 2014-05-22
Packaged: 2018-01-25 16:53:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 7,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1655642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rainproof/pseuds/rainproof, https://archiveofourown.org/users/teaberryblue/pseuds/teaberryblue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>If you're having trouble keeping track of your place in  <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/1912625">1796 Broadway</a>, or need a refresher on the plot, we've got a linked Table of Contents/Index to mini-arcs within the larger fic, and summaries of many chapters. (Currently through Chapter 189)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Index

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [1796 Broadway](https://archiveofourown.org/works/972937) by [rainproof](https://archiveofourown.org/users/rainproof/pseuds/rainproof), [teaberryblue](https://archiveofourown.org/users/teaberryblue/pseuds/teaberryblue). 



> The summaries aren't completed, but we will do our best to get there soon. Please note that the summaries include spoilers for the chapters listed! The index should be spoiler-free for those of you who have not read the fic, but we hope they will also provide helpful hints to those of you trying to find your place.
> 
> We absolutely welcome feedback and suggestions! This is supposed to be a resource for you, so if you think anything could be done better, please let us know.

This is a quick index to the mini story arcs/thematically linked chapters within the large fic and should help you find your place if you are trying to catch up with the fic, or if you're looking for a particular letter or transcript. 

 

**Phase One**

(Beginning)  
[Take A Memo](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/1912625)

(Captain Quarantine)  
[Thank the Lord for StarkNet 5g, or something.](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/1922843)

(DUM-E)  
[Flame On.](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/1929726)

(What Secret Bunker?)  
[A Bed Stuffed With Diamonds](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/1932161)

(The United Nations)  
[An Issue of Personal Concern](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/1941584)

(Comic-Con)  
[Do You Read Slashfic?](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/1973242)

(Old Westbury)  
[I'm drunk and this is ridiculous.](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/1949221)

(Stark Industries Human Resources)  
[Exhibitions Design & Creative Consultant](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/1962485)

(Hell's Kitchen)  
[Your shoulders look ten miles wide.](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/1968689)

(Tony In Japan)  
[Hey, it's You!](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/1975335)

(72 Hours in a Hotel)  
[Twice the Posted Speed Limit](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/1984353)

**Phase Two**

(Arc Reactor)  
[Black Out All of Manhattan](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2008782)

(Becky)  
[Here, Back, Settled](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2009492)

(Central Park Zoo)  
[Surprisingly Nice](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2010453)

(Totally Platonic Man-Talks)  
[Resolvable Sexual Tension](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2014708)

(Pepper)  
["hooker and cocaine-fueled Tokyo antics"](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2021530)

(The Bro Code)  
[ pretentious martinis](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2026856)

(Christmas)  
[Cracked into a Hundred Pieces](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2180092)

(Art Party)  
[PARTY PARTY PARTY](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2218131)

(Pepper, Again)  
[World’s Most Awkward Clarification](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2214032)

(New Years' Eve)  
[Our Current Arrangement](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2034065)

(New Years' Resolutions)  
[ On My Way Up](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2064941)

(New Years' Day)  
[Safe OR Economical](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2447661)

(The Mansion)  
[Best of Luck](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2072125)

(Ana)  
[The personal assistant](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2074782)

(Public Relations)  
[The Chi'tauri were an inside job](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2491519)

**Phase Three**

(Fury)  
[Please see attached.](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2249388)

(Moving In)  
[The Big Move-In Grand Tour](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2276523)

(The New PA)  
[a 2x2 passport-styled photo](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2272572)

(Cats and Dogs)  
[Meet KNUT THE VIKING CHIEFTAIN FOSTER-ODINSSON](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2477806)

(Starting A New Job)  
[Slack off and Wrestle Aliens](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2898250)

(Business Negotiations)  
[Crispy Roasted Duckling](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2488252)

(Served with Papers)  
[Blonde hair, blue eyes, well built and polite to a fault](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2248805)

(The Gala)  
[This night will never end.](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2367840)

(Maddy and Catherine)  
[Feeling Neglected](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/3141253)

(Valentine's Day)  
[Gauzy red and pale butter](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2297029)

(Your Humble and Obedient System)  
[(Spreadsheet attached)](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2357383)

(Giving it All Away)  
[Die Before I'm Thirty](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/2313522)

 

(Ransom)  
[Plan of Attack](http://archiveofourown.org/works/972937/chapters/3369542)


	2. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 1-18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, these summaries contain spoilers through Chapter 18.

The story begins with a vitriolic letter from Tony to Steve after Steve demands that Tony contact him in writing. Tony complains that Clint has been stealing his leftovers, and about various personality conflicts around the Tower (all of which involve Tony). 

Steve addresses his points in a numbered list and offers to mediate a conversation between Tony and Clint. Tony responds by telling Steve that he should be more grateful, and possibly make him french toast.

Steve makes Tony five loaves’ worth of french toast, and gives him the recipe. Tony promptly starts a fire attempting to recreate it, and deliberately schedules construction work on the Tower for the same time as Steve’s team meeting-- and schedules Stark Industries work deliberately to conflict with the team meeting so he can’t go.

Steve writes a very long letter in which he attempts to solve or at least partially solve all of Tony’s complaints-- and draws a comic version of the instructions for the french toast (here).

Tony asks JARVIS to reply instead. JARVIS makes some suggestions about building out Tony’s new workshop and buys cupcakes for the team. Tony also has JARVIS deposit $3500 into Steve’s personal bank account for “acting as Tony’s PA.”

Steve gets upset and returns the money, and stops replying in the formal structure he had been using before to write a rather heartfelt letter explaining that he’s trying to work hard to make Tony happy with the situation, but he doesn’t know what else he can do. He say that he couldn’t reply to JARVIS because typing is difficult for him, and suggests that Tony doesn’t take him seriously because he’s “just a kid.” 

Tony tells Steve to use dictation software, that he doesn’t think of Steve as a kid, and once again refuses to come to team meetings, but says he might be able to give Steve some advice.

Steve accepts Tony’s offer of advice-- if it’s meant seriously-- and gives Tony a rundown of why he thinks team meetings are important, while expressing some discomfort with his new position and the fact that he has not been given a choice as far as what he might want to do with his life. He also expresses discomfort with the way Tony spend money. He also says that he knows Tony hasn’t been speaking to Pepper.

Tony designs a modified StarkPad for Steve with stylus input for him to use, and gives it to him. He also offers to help Steve figure out a plan to go back to college. He says that it’s not fair of Steve to criticize him for spending money he’s earned himself and says they need to meet halfway. He also denies that he hasn’t been speaking to Pepper-- he’s been speaking to her once a week, for work-related purposes.

Tony suggests that they socialize with the team rather than having status meetings, and invites Steve to meet DUM-E, whom he has recently reconstructed. He also asks Steve if he’d like to have coffee. Steve agrees to both invitations, thanks Tony for the Starkpad, and starts considering perhaps having a movie night, as well as talks a little bit about education and his own background growing up in the Depression.

Tony installs a bunch of art software on Steve’s tablet, and expresses dismay that Steve has never seen Star Wars. 

The two go out to coffee, and Tony makes Steve a list of all the books, movies, and TV shows he thinks Steve needs to catch up on. They continue discussing Steve’s education and various media, although Steve registers some discomfort with being out in public and facing celebrity status, which is still new to him.

Tony opens up to Steve about some of the difficulties he’s been having with his relationship with Pepper since she was finally cured of Extremis. Steve encourages him, but Tony expresses doubts that they can make it work. 

Steve asks if there might be a way to borrow money from Tony to go back to school-- and offers to repay him in labor.

Tony actually realizes that some of the things Steve has been saying have been sarcasm. Oops.


	3. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 19-34

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, these summaries include spoilers through Chapter 34

We find out after the fact that movie night was interrupted by a bioterror attack. Steve and Bruce, who were the ones who responded, are now in quarantine at a hospital where the cable is (conveniently) out. While Steve and Bruce show no symptoms, the other people present have a severe bacterial infection. Tony sends Steve a tablet, and Steve uses it to draw unflattering pictures of Tony. (here)

Steve tells Tony to call in Rhodey as backup, and to expect another attack. As expected, there is a similar attack in Chicago. The remaining Avengers handle it on the outside while Steve pretty much throws a conniption about being in quarantine, punctuated with a lot of art illustrating his frustration. Another attack takes place at the UN. 

Tony relates a story about how DUM-E lit a candle for him on his 21st birthday and accidentally started a fire. Steve illustrates the story, and tells Tony about what it was like to discover his brain was enhanced after being given the serum. 

They have a somewhat serious discussion about Steve’s choice to take the serum, his motivations for doing it, and the fact that he feels like the comics misrepresent his story and make him seem more self-sacrificing than he was. They also discuss issues of celebrity and Captain America as a cultural icon, something Steve is deeply uncomfortable with.

Tony gets permission to have Steve and Bruce released from the hospital so long as they remain in quarantine in the Tower-- they end up in Bruce’s lab, though Tony flouts the quarantine so that he can use the lab facilities. Steve expresses concern over the possibility that Tony may get sick.

He also reveals that he’s been sleeping in Steve’s bed while Steve’s been gone, much to Steve’s confusion, as Tony has purchased himself a $60,000 bed of his own. Tony also put Iron Man sheets on Steve’s bed.


	4. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 35-48

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, these summaries contain spoilers through Chapter 48

Tony tells Steve that his father, Howard Stark, had a collection of old Captain America memorabilia. Steve asks if it would be okay for him to look at it sometime, and Tony acquiesces. Steve asks Tony about the secret bunker in Howard’s house, and Tony gets upset because he believes Steve is joking about his friendship with Howard in the 1940s, when Tony’s relationship with his father was distant at best. Tony has never seen nor heard of the bunker. 

Steve takes the opportunity to clarify that he was never friends with Howard-- that he respected him professionally, but their relationship was difficult at best and that they philosophically disagreed in many ways. 

JARVIS contacts Steve to tell him that Tony is exhibiting symptoms of the infection caused by the biotoxin. Steve puts Tony under lockdown in Steve’s apartment, and sends Clint and Natasha to stay in a hotel to keep them from contracting the illness. Bruce develops an antibiotic targeted to help with the infection, and Steve gives it to Tony, convinced that Tony thinks he’s Pepper based on the way Tony is talking to him.

They gets word that a group of UN employees are holding the General Assembly hostage, and Steve leaves to deal with the situation, along with Thor, Nat and Clint. Tony in his feverish state is somewhat affectionate, and tells Steve to be careful. 

The kidnappers at the UN make demands about military technology that sound as if they are specifically targeted at Tony. 

The police turn the phone over to Steve, who has no experience with hostage negotiations. The kidnappers demand he turn himself over. Steve formulates a plan, but doesn’t pass it on to Tony-- he just tells him not to worry. Tony becomes furious and tries to leave the Tower-- after a brief scuffle with Bruce, who is trying to remain calm, JARVIS freezes Tony’s repulsors so he can’t leave. Tony’s letters have become riddled with misspellings. 

The next letter is from Natasha, telling Tony that Steve in in the UN. The NYPD tried to shoot him with a tranquilizer to turn him over to the kidnappers, and Steve faked unconsciousness until he was inside. Thor made a big scene with the cops which gave Clint and several SHIELD agents time to sneak in without anyone noticing. 

Tony shuts down JARVIS to minimal operations so that he can leave the Tower-- Bruce turns into the Hulk to prevent him from leaving, and they fight.

Natasha, Clint, and SHIELD get into the building, give Steve his shield, and manage to take the kidnappers into custody. Bruce discovers, based on Tony’s erratically violent behavior, that there is also a mind-control aspect to the toxin, which was controlling Tony and also the kidnappers, who were ordinary UN employees who had been infected. Bruce creates an antidote, while Natasha mentions to Tony that she thinks Steve needs to get laid.

Once he is mostly recovered, Tony sends Steve a very long and heartfelt thank you-slash-apology letter, and tells him that he sent some nasty texts to Pepper while he was compromised, and he needs to go see her soon to try to sort out their differences. He mentions that he might combine that with a planned trip to Japan, and invites Steve to come with him. He also decides to dismantle the part of JARVIS’ program that lets him disable JARVIS, because he realizes that JARVIS was only trying to protect him. 

Natasha sends a note to Bruce telling Bruce that, while using Steve’s StarkPad during the standoff, she saw some of Tony’s and Steve’s messages to each other and realized they were both flirting-- though she thinks they’re both oblivious. She signs off with a lipstick-kiss print and a fairly overt request for sex as soon as Bruce is out of quarantine, suggesting that the two of them have been in a relationship of some sort for a while.


	5. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 49-65

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, these summaries contain spoilers through Chapter 65

As Tony recovers, Steve and Tony discuss Tony’s relationship with Pepper, and Tony’s concerns that it may be coming to an end. Steve invites Tony to get out of the house by visiting the Central Park Zoo, and Tony says that he isn’t quite up to it, but would like to go to his family’s mansion on Long Island, as Tony wants to see the bunker that he had never known about, and Steve wants to see the Captain America collectibles. 

Tony offers to buy Steve a new bed, and Steve declines, because he’s proud of his ability to earn and save money, and buy his own new things for the first time in his life. 

Tony has been invited to a conference in Hiroshima and has mixed feelings because of his father’s part in the Manhattan Project. Steve encourages him, and expresses his own mixed feelings. He tells Tony not to use a delay in his Japan trip to put off speaking to Pepper. He agrees to go to the mansion-- but he has to do a panel at New York Comic-Con first, and invites Tony to pick him up there.

It turns out that Steve Green, an old friend of Tony’s who happened to write Captain America back in the 1970s, is the moderator for Steve’s panel. Steve does quite well on the Comic-Con panel until people start asking him uncomfortable questions about his teammates and about slashfic, and he starts floundering-- and is rescued by Tony, who gets up on stage, charms the crowd, and plants a kiss on Steve’s cheek for the cameras. 

The two go to Long Island, to the Stark Mansion, where Tony explores his father’s bunker-- and discovers that once upon a time, Howard, who insisted he hated dogs and would not let Tony have one as a child, had rescued Laika, the famed Russian space dog who died during an early space exploration mission, and kept Laika as a pet. 

Steve, meanwhile, is upstairs going through what Tony calls Howard’s “Creepy Cap Crap, and discovers a collection of memorabilia from his own funeral, and becomes introspective about it. He decides to call it a vacation and tells Natasha they will be extending their stay for a few days. 

They have a picnic in the grass, drink champagne, eat cookies, and Tony, on a whim, fixes a fountain that has been clogged, getting drunk and falling over in the pond. 

They talk a little bit about the change of pace, being at the house, watch some old films of Steve and his friends back in the 1940s, as well as some movies of Tony as a child, dressed up like Captain America. Tony considers wiring the house for JARVIS, and otherwise bringing the house up to date to get more use out of it. 

They have another discussion where Steve expresses discomfort with Tony offering him lavish gifts, and Tony says that his money is his to do what he likes with. Tony asks Steve if he would like to help refurbish the house as a way to repay him for things Steve can’t afford. Steve agrees. 

Tony jokingly suggests that Steve should grow a beard for him as a Christmas present after Steve says he looks terrible with a beard.

Steve talks a little bit about his frustrations with dating in the modern era, and Tony encourages him to do so. 

Bruce writes to Natasha and tells her that he’s unsurprised about the flirtation: that Tony and Steve never stop talking about each other. He also offers to make her dinner and discusses philosophy.


	6. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 66-81

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, these summaries contain spoilers through Chapter 81.

Steve gets a surprise invitation to apply for a design job at Stark Industries, and he sends Tony a letter ribbing him for it-- but also grateful, and says he will try it out, but that he needs to borrow money for a suit. Tony, instead, decides to send Steve to his tailor to get a very fancy, expensive suit. He also offers to take Steve out to dinner to “give him dating advice.” 

Steve talks to Tony about how Tony needs to sort out his issues with Pepper, and Tony calls Steve “sugarplum” for the first time-- a nickname that sticks around for the duration of the story.

Tony continues to talk about how much he loves Pepper, how important she is to him, and how he is afraid to talk to her because he is scared she’ll break things off. 

Steve expresses apprehension about working for SI, particularly because Tony talks about how he’s never had a close friend he didn’t pay, and because he’s not sure he can handle the position. Tony is encouraging. Steve also asks Tony to come with him to buy his suit, and Tony tells him he is sure Steve can do it on his own-- not realizing that Steve is very uncomfortable about choosing wrong when Tony is spending so much money. Steve gets short with Tony, and Tony agrees to go. They decide they will both get new suits and wear them out to dinner. 

Tony is approved to leave the country, so he decides to go to California, visit Pepper, and then go to Japan as planned. 

However, on the night that they go out for dinner, there is a construction accident nearby. Steve rushes in to save a woman named Rebecca Quan from a falling pillar of concrete, and rescues her, but gets himself injured in the process. 

Tony has a panic attack when Steve gets hurt-- his first in a long time. Steve assures him that it’s okay, that he’ll heal quickly, and tells him about how all of his scars vanished when he took the serum.

 

While Steve is still not completely recovered, Tony decides to go to Malibu a little early.  
Tony goes on to give Steve a massage which is somewhat sexual in nature, and they watch “The Nightmare Before Christmas” because it is Halloween. Steve writes Tony a letter which he thinks makes his feelings for Tony quite obvious.

Steve asks him what he wants to do on his last day in New York and invites him to visit the girl he rescued, Rebecca, in the hospital, but Tony doesn’t answer. 

Meanwhile, Clint finds the Steve-as-knight-in-shining-armor thing pretty hilarious, and starts making macros of Steve to post on the internet.


	7. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 82-100

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, these summaries contain spoilers through Chapter 100

Natasha thanks Bruce for making breakfast for her-- even though she didn’t any bacon as it was eaten by “the boys” before she got there. 

She expresses frustration with Steve’s and Tony’s confusing relationship, and talks about why she dislikes Camus. 

Meanwhile, Tony isn’t answering Steve’s letters-- but Steve, Clint and Natasha accidentally meet up with Rebecca and spend a fun day exploring Central Park and goofing off. 

Clint keeps making macros, and starts including Rebecca (also known as “Becky”) on his email lists.

The team learns that Pepper and Tony have broken up from a gossip blog, as Tony is not in touch with any of them. Steve writes to express his concern, but does not hear back. 

Steve puts a Captain America and an Iron Man action figure on Clint’s My Little Ponies that he collects, takes photos, and sends them to Tony to cheer him up, but he still does not hear back.

Meanwhile, Clint, Steve, and Becky are hanging out a lot socially, going to movies and museums together. Becky invites Steve to come volunteer with her at a hospital, and the press catches them “getting friendly.” 

Tony goes to Japan, where he is seen partying, spending money frivolously, and supposedly in the company of strippers and hookers, as well as using a lot of drugs. He is throwing loud, raging parties that are bothering the neighbors. 

Steve keeps trying to get in touch but to no avail. In the meantime, Tony’s workshop in the Tower is finally complete, and Steve moves DUM-E in on his own, then puts his own desk there to keep DUM-E company. 

Steve is clearly of mixed feelings about whether to tell Tony about Becky, as he keeps beginning to and then crosses out his mentions of her. He also becomes concerned that Tony stopped writing because of the letter Steve sent to Tony where he was, in his mind, quite obviously coming on to him, which was the first one Tony didn’t reply to. 

Tony’s dangerous behavior continues, and Clint is sending around the articles he finds about it. Steve defends him, since, in one of the articles, Tony claimed it was not true. Clint and Steve have a slight altercation over it, with Clint suggesting Steve is not doing as much as he could as Team Leader, though they are clearly still socializing as friends, and Steve invites Clint to go out with him and Becky again. 

After talking to Clint, Steve sends Tony another email telling him that the team is upset over his behavior and he will have to take disciplinary action. He still attempts to be a supportive friend. 

Steve is extremely conflicted over his feelings for Tony even in Tony’s absence, but he does not feel he can talk to Tony about them, and instead sends Tony an email telling him about Bucky and how important Bucky was to him, and expresses his fear at being incapable of helping friends who meant a lot to him.


	8. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 101-118

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, these summaries contain spoilers through Chapter 118

About a month has passed since Tony left New York. Tony is in a bad car accident in Japan, with speculation flying that he may have been driving under the influence. Tony had not changed his emergency contacts after breaking up with Pepper, and Pepper gets the call. She calls Steve, and Steve immediately flies to Japan. 

Steve is angry and confused but also trying to work out his feelings toward Tony. Tony is released from the hospital when Steve arrives, with whiplash, minor lacerations, and a sprained wrist. Steve is told that he has to stay with Tony in Japan for 72 hours, but also that Tony was not drinking. Steve tells Clint to relay the info to Becky, and offers Clint his ticket to the play Steve and Becky were supposed to see.

Becky, meanwhile, sees a really nasty gossip blog article and emails Steve about it, checking to see if everything is okay.

Natasha expresses concerns to Bruce about the way Steve and Tony interact, and that Steve is going to drop his new romance with Becky because of Tony’s accident. She reveals that she’s done a full background check on Becky, and that she quite likes her, as does Clint. Then she asks if Bruce would like to go on a proper date, and suggests that that isn’t something the two of them do very often. 

Meanwhile, in Japan, at the hotel, Tony has shut himself in the bedroom, furious with Steve, and rants about Pepper and how Pepper had a press release about their breakup prepared when he arrived. He accuses Steve of treating him like he’s on sucide watch. Steve replies to tell Tony that he is, actually, on suicide watch, after the doctors were concerned about the car crash after a month of erratic, self-destructive behavior. Steve mentions that they missed Thanksgiving because of the accident, and he’s going to make some dinner with the unfamiliar Japanese ingredients the hotel supplied. 

Tony sends a rather heartfelt apology for his first, angry letter, and nearly admits that he has feelings for Steve several times. He laments the fact that he’s never had a friendship of the sort Steve had with Bucky.

Steve accepts his apology and explains that he has to issue a formal reprimand for Tony’s behavior because of his role as Team Leader, but that that is not necessarily his personal inclination, and that he knows Tony is having a hard time. He assures Tony that he came to Japan because he wanted to, and tells him he’s finished making dinner-- squid paella, and that he’ll leave it out for Tony to have some later.. He ends the letter with a cartoon sketch of a squid in a pilgrim hat that says “Happy Squidsgiving.” 

Tony does end up joining Steve for dinner eventually, though he doesn’t talk much. He asks Steve if he can replace Pepper with Steve as his emergency contact, and offers to take Steve on a vacation to Hawaii as soon as they are able to leave the hotel. He also says he thought he heard the door open during the night, and asks Steve if he was checking on him.

Steve tells Tony that yes, he can be his emergency contact, and admits to coming into Tony’s room and sleeping on the floor because he sleeps better around people. He also agrees to go to Hawaii, but requests clarification on the nature of the invitation, because he knows Tony has been flirting with him. 

Tony is mortified, admits he is attracted to Steve, and apologizes for making him uncomfortable, finishing by saying that he has no expectations, and hopes it doesn’t hurt their friendship. Steve, in turn, thought he had already made his feelings clear, and tries to clarify again. He says they have things that they need to talk about, but “can't decide if you're the biggest mistake I could make, or the best thing I could ask for.”

Tony is blindsided, as he didn’t even know Steve was attracted to men. He panics, and then, when he calms down, asks to talk about it in the morning, and further asks Steve if he will come sleep with him-- platonically, because he is having trouble sleeping.

Steve sends a short email to Becky, telling her that he’s probably going to go to Hawaii with Tony for a little while, and he’ll see her when he gets back. Becky sends him a reassuring email back, telling him it’s fine and that she’s been having a nice time while he’s been gone. She mentions that people keep mistaking Clint for her boyfriend. 

Meanwhile, Steve does in fact go to sleep in Tony’s room. We do not find out the nature of the events that take place that night, but whatever they are, they are interrupted by Natasha who needs Tony back at the Tower immediately to deal with a security breach aimed at the arc reactor.


	9. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 119-121

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, these summaries contain spoilers through Chapter 121

Chapter 119 introduces a new format, as it is presented as an audio transcript rather than a letter or news article. 

Tony takes the suit and scurries off to New York; Steve is stuck taking SHIELD transport back, which means that he has to watch the situation at the Tower through a video feed.   
They are in the sub-basement of the Tower, where the reactor is housed. There is some structural damage, which Tony attempts to repair. Clint ends up battling something that Clint describes as “flying PlumbBobs,” after the character markers in the Sims-- small flying devices that spit acid. 

While Tony is fixing the structural damage, he gives Natasha the log into the computer system that runs the Tower, and she works on shutting down the system. 

Meanwhile, Clint mentions to Steve that he had spoken to Becky. Tony asks who Becky is, and Clint says that she’s Steve’s girlfriend. Tony is distracted enough by this news that he injures his hand, burning it badly.

Natasha successfully shuts down the system, JARVIS blips for a moment, but comes back online right away. 

Natasha reports the incident-- and Tony’s seeming distraction-- to Fury.

Bruce sends Natasha a note that essentially says he is not expressing his affection for her in words because he feels that it would be a burden to her.


	10. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 122-130

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, these summaries contain spoilers through Chapter 130

Tony leaves as soon as the problem at the Tower is corrected, and goes out to the Mansion on his own. 

Steve arrives back at the Tower to discover that Tony is gone, and that in his absence, three postcards from Tony arrived: Tony had been writing to him while in Japan, but had mailed all the postcards very late. 

He asks Tony if he’s alright, and suggests he might need help for his injured hand. 

Tony says he’s not alright, expresses a great deal of anger at Steve, and suggests that he feels Steve has been misleading him due to the way they interacted in Japan and Steve’s failure to mention Becky.

Steve apologizes profusely, and explains that he had been intending to talk to Tony about Becky when they woke. 

Tony assures Steve that he’s glad Steve said something, and he is sure they can figure out a way to continue being friends. He also assured Steve that he knows he’s a mistake, and that Steve is probably better off with Becky.

Steve admits in a rather heartfelt letter that he doesn’t know what he wants, and that he’s having trouble committing to anything in this new world because of how suddenly he lost the old one. He says he doesn’t know what he wants from Tony or Becky, and that he needs to talk to them each separately. 

Tony asks Steve if he’s spoken to a counselor, and tries to be supportive of Steve’s difficulties, and then says he’s still angry but that he wants to be friends, regardless of anything else. He also offers to go to the zoo. They make plans to go to the zoo the next day.

Steve says he was assigned a counselor, but that he hasn’t gone, and he doesn’t think he needs one because he isn’t sick. He assures Tony that he wants to continue being friends as well, and then reminds Tony that he needs to eat-- and draws him a comic giving instructions on how to open a cereal box, in case Tony is incapable of feeding himself otherwise. 

Tony tells Steve that he really thinks Steve should see a counselor. 

He talks about all of the things he’s found in the bunker-- a number of maps of South America, weird Egyptian artifacts, a cabinet he can’t open, a number of keys.

Natasha sends Bruce a very romantic poem, and attaches an assurance that nothing he could say would be a burden.


	11. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 131-141

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, these summaries contain spoilers through Chapter 141

Steve tells Becky that he’s back in town, and offers to cook dinner if she’ll come over. He says he has something he needs to talk to her about, but that it’s not anything bad She cancels plans with her friends to have dinner with him.

Shortly after her arrival, the salmon he was cooking burns, and they are stuck without anything to eat. 

Meanwhile, Becky finds a news article about how Pepper is dating a mystery man. She sends it to Clint and asks if he has any insight, as Steve didn’t really tell her much about what happened to Tony in Japan.

Steve attempts to cook dinner for Becky, but the meal burns, and they resort to eating ice cream instead. He talks to her a little about waking up and essentially coming back from the war, and how alone he feels, and tells her he’s looking for a therapist. She’s very supportive. 

He also tries to talk to her about Tony, by telling her that he thinks he has feelings for somebody else, but that they’re not available. Becky is distressed not only by this information, but by the way he presents it, and the fact that Steve had been continually asking Clint to come along on their dates. Steve tries to explain that he has no experience dating. 

Becky tells him she’s not interested in dating someone who is in love with someone else. He insists he isn’t, but she says it’s clear his feelings are elsewhere, and leaves.   
Steve writes a long letter to Tony, talking about how Becky had left, and how he always disappoints people who expect too much of him. He also tells Tony about how Howard had been looking for some mystical headpiece in South America just before Steve had crashed into the ice, and that HYDRA had been after it, too. 

Becky goes to a bar, where she gets drunk and sends Clint a long, unhappy email asking if Clint knew Steve was planning to dump her, and then says that she’s just asked her sister if she could bring her new boyfriend for Christmas dinner, and did Clint want to join her instead, as a stand-in, so that she wouldn’t have to explain to her sister that she’d been dumped. 

Meanwhile, Tony manages to get JARVIS installed at the Mansion, but does not have surveillance cameras, voice output, or a network set up. 

Clint agrees to go with Becky for Christmas, as long as she thinks about it and still thinks it’s a good idea when she’s sober. He also offers to come pick her up at the bar and give her a ride, and generally to be a shoulder to cry on.

Tony assures Steve that he’s not disappointing, and that he is holding himself to expectations that are too high based on people’s idealized version of Captain America. He suggests asking Pepper for a therapist, and asks if Steve would still like to go to the zoo.

Steve thanks him, talks a little more about his insecurities, and agrees to pick Tony up on his bike.


	12. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 142-153

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note, these summaries contain spoilers for chapters through 153

Tony thanks Steve for going to the zoo with him and talks briefly about the human Jarvis having taken Tony to the zoo as a child for his birthday one year. He tries to be encouraging about Steve’s breakup, and makes a joke about building a robot dog. He, ahem, offhandedly mentions that his new bed is finally getting installed and Steve should come up to see it.

Steve thanks Tony for the day at the zoo, and the children’s lion-shaped cup that Tony bought him. He threatens to put Hawkeye sheets on Tony’s bed. 

Steve talks a little bit about what the zoo was like in the 1920s, and how the animals were mistreated. He also says that he thinks a robot dog would be terrifying, but that Tony could get a real dog.

Steve tells Tony that he doesn’t feel comfortable taking the job at Stark Industries, given his feelings for him. He is concerned that Tony thinks he’s only sticking around because of the things Tony is giving him.   
Tony gets angry and says he doesn’t know what Steve wants from him, or what Steve thinks of him, and that he’s not even sure if Steve likes him. He gets frustrated with Steve’s insistence on turning down most of the help Tony offers. 

Steve says that Tony knows exactly how Steve feels about him, and that that’s why Steve can’t take the job. 

Tony takes twenty-four hours to reply, and says he wishes Steve would let him do things for him.

Steve says that he wants Tony to do things for him, but he wants the same kinds of things he does for Tony, not extravagant gestures. And then he says he wants Tony to talk to him. 

Tony tells Steve that Pepper is going to be in town soon, and he’s nervous about it. He also asks Steve why Steve hasn’t come up to see his new bed.

Steve is encouraging about Pepper and offers to come along if Tony needs someone to make small talk or smooth out the awkwardness. He also says he’d rather talk in person before coming up to “see Tony’s bed.” 

Tony acknowledges Steve’s offer of support re: Pepper, but says that he should probably see her alone, and tells Steve to come to the lab to talk. He also tells Steve he has a project he needs help with, and suggests a date for Steve to help him. 

Steve realizes the date is Christmas, but seems hesitant to tell Tony. He does, however, mention that Becky has invited them all to her holiday party a few days later. He mentions that he tried to come to the lab but that JARVIS said Tony was not to be disturbed.

Tony tells Steve to meet him in the penthouse instead, and offers straightforward, platonic discussion. Steve agrees.

When Steve gets up to Tony’s penthouse, the surveillance footage is triggered, and this scene takes place as a transcript. Tony seems uneasy and overeager to try to put Steve at ease, which starts them off on an awkward note. 

They discuss Tony’s time in Japan and how Steve had assumed Tony had written him off or was angry with him because of Tony’s lack of communication, and that that was part of why he’d decided to date Becky, instead. 

Tony says he was worried about disappointing Steve, and Steve argues that he’s already seen the worst and won’t be disappointed. Steve also says that he thinks they need to work out their individual problems before anything else happens between them. He also admits to having a hard time keeping away from Tony.  
Tony says he wants to help Steve, but he’s worried that he might be rebounding from his breakup with Pepper. 

Steve admits to wanting to kiss him, and Tony suggests they try it, rather enthusiastically and with a touch of desperation. Steve refuses and tells Tony to stop pleading with him, but curls up with him on the sofa, and ends up putting his head in Tony’s lap. 

Tony admits that he’s worried about wrecking their friendship; Steve admits he’s worried about how undermining his role as team leader. 

They start talking about Japan again, and Tony insists he had no idea that Steve had feelings for him. 

Steve tells Tony he’s the stupidest genius he’s ever met, and kisses him without warning.

They make out on the sofa briefly before Tony brings up the idea of negotiating ground rules for their relationship. Steve is hesitant about the idea and not keen on Tony’s more modern use of the word “dating” as it brings up negative connotations for him, but they discuss it briefly, and Tony climbs into his lap. 

Steve tells Tony that he wants everything between them to remain the same, and Tony clarifies that he’s allowed to kiss him-- which Steve agrees to, unless it’s in public. They make out a bit more, but Steve draws a line at anything else physical, largely because he feels as if he’s gone back on their agreement about platonic discussion and doesn’t want to continue ignoring boundaries. 

Tony asks Steve to go out to dinner with him the next night. They kiss some more, and eventually move to Tony’s bedroom, at which point the surveillance transmission ends.


	13. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 154-171

Tony tries to cook breakfast for Steve using the french toast recipe Steve drew for him months earlier but sets off the fire alarm (by burning butter, sigh); Steve barrels into the kitchen and, realizing what’s happened, teaches Tony how to make French toast. Clint complains about the fire alarm rousing the team and Bruce and Nat roll their eyes at Tony’s attempts to excuse-away his time with Steve… all while Steve and Tony exchange a series of utterly smitten/gooshy/squishy/sappy/adorable/teeth-rottingly sugary love letters and attempt to muddle through the ins and outs of defining their relationship.

After Steve leaves a butane torch outside the door, promising lessons in Crème Brulee, Tony gives Steve a key to the penthouse. Steve starts stopping by to leave gifts or make dinner/dessert while Tony is out, occasionally accompanied by illustrations… generally, the two start to get comfortable with one another. They go out to a fancy pizzeria on their first actual date, and Tony insists on doing all the ordering and paying, and sneaks a kiss when no one is looking. Steve draws a tiny moose on a post-it and sticks it on Tony’s bowl of chocolate mousse one day, and they start saying “moose,” at each other as an in-joke/term of affection.

Steve tells Tony he’s had feelings for him since he watched Tony fall into the fountain at Stark Mansion, and Tony admits he’s crushed on Steve since he was recovering from the nanovirus he caught when the UN was attacked. Steve continues to teach Tony to cook, and they discuss the process of coming out to the team and try to predict people’s reactions.

Steve is officially hired by Stark Industries, starting the first week of January though he expresses nervousness and uncertainty about the job.

Natasha, however, postpones the team’s plans to finally show Steve _Star Wars_ because she and Bruce have a mission.


	14. Chapter Summaries: Chapters 172-189

Pepper Potts comes to New York to stay for two weeks. She tells Tony she’s there in preparation for the new Starkpad release, and kicks off her stay by meeting Tony for lunch.

In addition to working on the new Starkpad, Tony is putting together a defensive shield generator which he means to test on Stark Tower and then potentially sell to Fury and SHIELD.

Tony unintentionally lets his relationship with Steve slip over lunch, and apologizes to Steve, who has dinner plans with Pepper that night. Steve assures Tony that he’ll handle it and it will be fine. He texts Pepper and apologizes on Tony’s behalf, and offers to buy her a drink.

It turns out that Natasha was lying about the mission-- to everyone, including Bruce. It’s his birthday, so she takes him to Montauk. She rented a house for them, so the pair enjoy a relaxing mini-vacation, including winery and brewery visits squeezed in between lots and lots and lots of romantic nookie. They return to New York City later in the week without telling the other Avengers where they actually were.

Pepper meets Steve for dinner and is clearly angry and upset over their new relationship. She refers to the flowers Steve brings her as “I’m Sorry I’m Fucking Your Ex Flowers.” In general, she’s rather terse and sarcastic, but they do talk a bit about the problems of dating Tony, and then she admits that she came to New York partially in the hopes of possibly getting back together with Tony. She is also having difficulty with the Starkpad, which seems to be draining at an unusually fast rate.

Upon returning home, Steve tells (a slightly drunk) Tony about his miserable dinner experience, including Pepper’s motivations - all the while fully expecting Tony to leave him. Tony tells Steve that he and Pepper had their chance and chooses to stay with Steve instead. The two have sex for the first time. There’s Captain America-themed ice cream involved.

Images of Steve’s dinner with Pepper go viral, prompting media speculation that she and Steve are dating. Becky e-mails Clint about it, wondering if Pepper is the person Steve left her for; Clint thinks about it and realizes that the only person that fits the bill is Tony. He writes Steve asking straight-up if he and Tony are an item. He expresses concern not only that Steve’s feelings for Tony have clouded his judgement in the past (when Steve let Tony run wild/left the team for Japan), but also that Steve is setting himself up to be hurt. He ends the letter by asking whether Steve will be hurt by his own intentions of starting a relationship with Becky. 

In return, Steve admits to his feelings for Tony and defends himself against Clint’s suggestion that he’s been biased toward Tony, explaining that he has actually attempted disciplinary action against Tony, but Tony never notices or just doesn’t comply. He also gives Clint his blessing, though he’s not entirely comfortable with Becky and Clint dating, largely because he’s uncertain how to solidify his post-breakup friendship with her. 

Steve realizes that Becky had a completely different understanding of their breakup conversation, and that the breakup may have largely been due to miscommunication. He and Clint exchange a few works about it, and Steve seems reassured by the idea of Clint being good emotional support for Becky, and promises Clint he’ll do a better job of keeping in touch with her.

Steve tells Tony that it seems like at least Clint and Natasha already know about their relationship, and decides that means they may as well inform everyone else. He also tells Tony he'd be all right with using the term "dating," in spite of his hesitation, for clarity's sake.


End file.
